LOS ANGELES - TIRED of living 'la vida loca, Latin American singing sensation Ricky Martin has become the father of twin boys through a surrogate mother and will take time away from his career to raise them, his spokesman said in a statement on Tuesday.

The boys were delivered 'via gestational surrogacy', but no further details were released.

'Ricky is elated to begin this new chapter in his life as a parent and will be spending the remainder of the year out of the public spotlight in order to spend time with his children', said the statement issued by his New York-based spokesman.

A native of Puerto Rico, Martin, 36, first gained fame as a singer in boy band Menudo.

His 1999 album 'Ricky Martin' and its smash hit song Livin' la Vida Loca (living the crazy life) that made him a widely recognised pop star.

Other hits for the top-selling artist include She Bangs. Martin's 2006 CD MTV Unplugged debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's 'Top Latin Albums' chart, and he was honoured as the 2006 person of the year by the Latin Recording Academy. -- REUTERS